Know and Honor Your Goals

In the last post I talked about finding out the needs of the other party and how important that is in negotiations large and small. This post is a call to ?never forget your own goals!?

If you allow your attention to be pulled off of your own goals and objectives and give up what you need you will be left with a result ?less than zero?. Yes! Your goals are of supreme importance and must figure into anything and everything you do. This definitely dips into paradox territory as we seek to know the other?s needs and while still honoring our own objectives. But finding the balance is critical and in the end the major job of any successful interaction in business or otherwise.

But here?s the rub ? are you sure you know your goals and are you acting in a way that will get you to them?

It really is a tricky deal trying to figure out just what your goals are. Are you thinking long term enough? A quick win might be available to you, but will it affect the long term relationship and therefore the long term money making prospects? Make sure you are comfortable with your goals and how they will affect you today, tomorrow and down the road.

The other potential pit in this process is remaining faithful to your goals. For instance, I have a personal goal of raising my children to be wise, healthy and happy. I know that this means communicating with patience and disciplining with the ?long view? in mind. And yet, I still find myself losing patience and ignoring the consequences of a ?scream? fest from time to time. This is a situation where I am not honoring my goals because I?m jumping for the expedient ?quick fix? at the cost of my desired destination.

When interacting with others, keep in mind that you need to know your REAL goals and remain faithful to them. Don?t let emotion or circumstance yank you away from what you want!

Find the intersection of your goals and their needs and life gets easier, better for everybody and you get MORE!

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The ideas in this post were generated from a reading of the excellent book?Getting More? by Stuart Diamond. I have created ?tools? and helps for this book for you for free ? just click below to learn how to download them.